Food Truck Permits in Maryland
Last verified against official sources on by Amrit. How we verify
Yes. You need a food service facility license from the health department in the county where your truck's base of operations (its commissary) is. There is no single state food truck license. To sell in other Maryland counties, each county must give you a mobile reciprocity license if you hold a valid home-county license and stay within 90 miles of your base, and it can charge up to $300 for it. You will also need a sales and use tax license, a transient vendor license, fire marshal approval in counties that require it (such as Anne Arundel and Frederick) and any local vending permits.[2][1][8][17]
At a glance
| Permit needed | Yes. A food service facility license from the county health department where your base of operations is[3][1] |
|---|---|
| Selling in other counties | Each county must issue you a mobile reciprocity license if you hold a valid home-county license and operate within 90 miles of your Maryland base. It lasts 1 year and costs no more than $300[3] |
| License fee | Set by each county health department, so it differs by county. Plan review fees are separate[12] |
| Commissary | Required: a licensed base of operations for water, waste and storage. Only trucks selling just prepackaged frozen desserts are exempt[9][16] |
| Home kitchen | Not allowed. Food prepared at home can't be sold from a truck[12] |
| Training | Counties such as Howard require a certified food service manager on high and moderate priority trucks[12] |
| Fire safety | The State Fire Marshal's checklist (NFPA 1, Chapter 50) covers propane, hood suppression and extinguishers. Some counties' fire marshals, such as Anne Arundel's and Frederick's, inspect or approve trucks before they operate[7][17][11] |
| Sales tax | A Maryland sales and use tax license, then a free transient vendor license from the Comptroller, valid 90 days at a time[8] |
Step by step
Do these in order. Each step links to the official form or page.
Find a base of operations
Line up a licensed food business (a restaurant or commissary) to be your base of operations. It must give you drinking water, a way to dump wastewater and trash, and, if you need them, food storage and a place to wash utensils. The owner signs a base of operations form or letter for the health department. Your base decides your home county, and you must stay within 90 miles of it to get reciprocity licenses elsewhere in Maryland.[1][9][14]
Send plans to your home county health department before you build
Submit a menu, a floor plan of the truck with every piece of equipment, equipment spec sheets and usually a HACCP plan (a written food safety plan). Do this before you build or fit out the truck. Buying a used truck licensed elsewhere is risky, because another county's approval doesn't carry over automatically. In Montgomery County, plan review for new trucks is done by the Department of Permitting Services.[12][14][13]
Get a certified food service manager
If your truck cooks or handles open food (high or moderate priority), counties such as Howard require a certified food service manager, and someone trained in food safety must be on the truck whenever it operates.[12]
Pass a fire inspection
Fire rules for food trucks follow NFPA 1, Chapter 50. The State Fire Marshal's checklist covers propane cylinders and leak detectors, a hood and fire suppression system over grease-producing equipment, the right fire extinguishers and staff fire training. Ask your county fire marshal whether it inspects trucks. Anne Arundel County, for example, inspects every truck before it operates, at no charge for the first inspection and one re-inspection, and Frederick County requires its Fire Marshal's approval.[7][17][11]
Pass the health inspection and get your license
Book a pre-opening inspection with your home county health department once the truck is fully built and working. Bring the truck's MVA registration. The county issues your food service facility license after you pass and pay the license fee. Display the license on the truck.[13][12][3]
Register for sales tax and get a transient vendor license
Register with the Comptroller of Maryland for a sales and use tax license, and get a business license for the county where you will operate. Then get a transient vendor license from the Comptroller, which you need to sell taxable items from a vehicle. It's free but lasts only 90 days, and it's renewed only if you keep filing your sales tax returns.[8][12]
Get a reciprocity license for each other county
To sell in another Maryland county, apply there for a mobile reciprocity license. The county must issue it if you hold a valid home-county license and are within 90 miles of your base. If your home county has already inspected the truck, the other county can't make you pass another inspection first, though it may inspect you while you operate. It lasts 1 year. A truck that only works fairs and festivals can use a temporary permit for each event instead.[1]
Get local vending permits
Your health license doesn't tell you where you can park. Counties and cities issue their own vendor, peddler or hawker permits and set zoning rules. Check with each county and city where you plan to sell.[1][11][15]
Renew every year
Your food service license is an annual license, and each reciprocity license lasts 1 year. Your base of operations form is also renewed each year. If your home-county license lapses, other counties can suspend your reciprocity license until you renew it.[14][9][3]
Local rules
These places add their own requirements on top of the state rules.
- Anne Arundel County: The County Fire Marshal inspects every food truck before it operates, by appointment, and issues a sticker. Any appliance that makes smoke or grease-laden vapour must have a fixed suppression system. The first inspection and one re-inspection are free.[17]
- Howard County: Trucks must be fully self-contained for electricity, gas, water and sewerage. After the health license, you need a peddler's license from the Office of Consumer Protection and Fire Marshal approval.[12]
- Harford County: The health license isn't issued until you have the right hawker and peddler permit (from the Circuit Court, or the town or county where you sell) and an electrical inspection. Trucks must move off their site daily, except up to 72 hours on holidays and weekends.[15]
- Frederick County and the City of Frederick: You need Frederick County Fire Marshal approval, and inside Frederick city limits a Vendor/Peddler Permit from the City of Frederick.[11]
- Prince George's County: Apart from ice cream trucks, you can't sell food on public streets and sidewalks. Trucks sell at licensed food truck hubs, fairs and festivals, and private sites. A 2021 county presentation lists a $300 health permit fee, which includes the health inspection. Check the current fee with the county.[18]
- Washington County: From October 1, 2026, food trucks and semipermanent food stands in Washington County don't need to have a toilet and lavatory available to the public.[6]
What it costs
| Step | Fee |
|---|---|
| Send plans to your home county health department before you build | Plan review fee set by each county health department |
| Pass a fire inspection | Set by each county fire marshal; Anne Arundel's first inspection is free |
| Pass the health inspection and get your license | Annual license fee set by each county health department |
| Register for sales tax and get a transient vendor license | Free (The transient vendor license is free) |
| Get a reciprocity license for each other county | Set by each county, by law no more than $300 per county per year |
| Get local vending permits | Set by each county or city |
| Total if every fee applies to you | $0 |
Not included in the total because the fee is set locally: Send plans to your home county health department before you build; Pass a fire inspection; Pass the health inspection and get your license; Get a reciprocity license for each other county; Get local vending permits.
Recent changes
- : Senate Bill 714 (Chapter 350 of 2026) takes effect: food trucks and semipermanent food stands in Washington County no longer need a toilet and lavatory for the public.[6]
- : Deadline for every food truck to have a base of operations (commissary), under food service regulations updated on December 31, 2018. Trucks selling only prepackaged frozen desserts are exempt.[9]
- : Senate Bill 262 (Chapter 215 of 2017) created the mobile reciprocity license, so a truck licensed in its home county can get licenses in other counties for up to $300 without a second inspection. It took effect immediately as an emergency law.[10][5]
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a separate health license for every Maryland county?
You need one license from your home county, then a mobile reciprocity license from each other county where you sell. The county must issue it if your home license is valid and you're within 90 miles of your base, and it can't charge more than $300 or make you pass a new inspection first if your home county has inspected the truck.[1]
Can my commissary be in Virginia, Pennsylvania or another state?
Not if you want reciprocity licenses in other Maryland counties: state rules say the base of operations must be in Maryland. Some counties, like Harford, have accepted a commissary licensed in a neighbouring state for their own license, so ask your home county first.[3][15]
Can I use my home kitchen as my commissary?
No. Your base of operations must be a licensed food service facility, and food made at home can't be sold from the truck.[4][12][15]
How much does a Maryland food truck license cost?
Each county health department sets its own license and plan review fees, so ask your home county. Reciprocity licenses in other counties are capped at $300 each per year. The transient vendor license from the Comptroller is free.[12][3][8]
I only do fairs and festivals. Do I need an annual license?
Not always. In counties like Garrett, a truck that only works public events can apply for a temporary food service permit for each event instead. If you sell on a routine basis, you need the annual license.[14]
Does my truck need a fire suppression system?
Yes, if you cook anything that makes grease. The State Fire Marshal's checklist requires a UL-300 suppression system over grease-producing equipment, serviced every six months, plus a Class K extinguisher for cooking oil.[7]
Can I buy a used food truck that's already licensed?
Yes, but a license can't be transferred to a new owner, so you go through plan review and inspection again. Counties warn that a truck licensed elsewhere may not pass in their county, so send photos of the equipment and plumbing to the health department before you buy.[3][12][14]
Sources
- Health-General Article § 21-304 (mobile reciprocity licence, base of operations), Maryland General Assembly. Checked October 25, 2026.
- Health-General Article § 21-305 (licence required), Maryland General Assembly. Checked October 25, 2026.
- COMAR 10.15.03.28 Licenses, Maryland Division of State Documents. Checked October 25, 2026.
- COMAR 10.15.03.02 Definitions, Maryland Division of State Documents. Checked October 25, 2026.
- SB 262 (2017): Public Health - Mobile Food Service Facilities - Licensing and Inspection by County Health Departments, Maryland General Assembly. Checked October 25, 2026.
- SB 714 (2026): Washington County - Mobile Food Service Facilities and Semipermanent Food Service Facilities - Toilet and Lavatory Facilities, Maryland General Assembly. Checked October 25, 2026.
- Mobile Food Vehicle Checklist (December 2022), Maryland State Fire Marshal. Checked October 25, 2026.
- Procedural Manual 905: Transient Vendors, Comptroller of Maryland, Field Enforcement Bureau. Checked October 25, 2026.
- Mobile Food Service Facilities, Queen Anne's County Department of Health. Checked October 25, 2026.
- Mobile Reciprocity License, Frederick County Health Department. Checked October 25, 2026.
- Mobile Units/Food Trucks, Frederick County Health Department. Checked October 25, 2026.
- Mobile Food Service Facility Requirements (4/2026), Howard County Health Department, Bureau of Environmental Health. Checked October 25, 2026.
- Mobile Food Service License, Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services, Licensure & Regulatory Services. Checked October 25, 2026.
- 2025 Mobile Unit/Food Truck Guidelines, Garrett County Health Department, Environmental Health Services. Checked October 25, 2026.
- Health Department Guidelines on Mobile Food Units (08/02/17), Harford County Health Department. Checked October 25, 2026. Guidelines dated 2017, before the 2018 COMAR update; check that Harford still applies them.
- Mobile Reciprocity Food Service Facility Acknowledgement Form (8/20/2025), Anne Arundel County Department of Health. Checked October 25, 2026.
- Food Truck Inspections, Anne Arundel County Fire Department, Fire Marshal Division. Checked October 25, 2026.
- Food Trucks in Prince George's County (DPIE webinar, February 25, 2021), Prince George's County Department of Permitting, Inspections and Enforcement. Checked October 25, 2026. A 2021 presentation; the fee and hub rules may have changed. Check the county's current pages.
Related
- Cottage Food Laws in Maryland
- Food Truck Permits in Pennsylvania
- Food Truck Permits in Virginia
- Food Truck Permits in West Virginia
- Food Truck Permits by State
This page is general information, not legal advice. Rules and fees change. Before you apply or start selling, confirm the details with Your county health department (local health departments of the Maryland Department of Health) or your local health department. Spotted something wrong or out of date?Report it and we will check it.